All revolutions need a leader. But that leader, no matter how saintly, cannot be trusted with the government beyond the earliest transitionary phase. In the best revolutions, the leader designates a trusted and worthy successor with whom they have no ties of friendship or family, and preferably little or no two-way communication.

Get them in the same room, then spring the decision on them on live television to catch their surprise. Hint that refusal would leave a power vacuum in the fragile transition phase and let their sense of responsibility do the rest. If you've picked the right one for the job, the hint won't even be necessary; They would figure it out on their own.

And if you had an armed paramilitary, don't disband it; transform it into the new, disciplined police and security force. Allow all those from the previous incarnations of such agencies to join unless they have committed actual crimes.

"But when you talk about destructionDon't you know that you can count me out... We'd all love to see the planYou ask me for a contributionWell, you knowWe're doing what we canBut when you want moneyFor people with minds that hateAll I can tell is brother you have to wait

You tell me it's the institutionWell, you knowYou better free you mind insteadBut if you go carrying pictures of chairman MaoYou ain't going to make it with anyone anyhow"

Remember that mercy is the most powerful tool the victor has in their possession. Pardon or even elevate those expecting imprisonment or death to create bonds of loyalty that even a childhood friendship cannot rival.

Do not interfere with civil services or bureaucracies unless a particular agency poses a genuine problem. Do not demonize existing special interest groups. Antagonize them only in private; they will thank you for it. Give them terms that are both powerful carrot and well-sharpened stick.

The old metric of all revolutions needing leaders is the one thing that may be changing fastest.Normally its the leadership that defines morality, law, and the direction of nations. But with the freeing of information everyone can come to consensus by way of shared meanings. The ideals themselves can lead, without human intervention.You don't need a president or dictator to translate national goals into common speak. You do need militia commanders and judges to organize armies and enforce laws, but they can be lead by predefined ideals without a central authority holding all the gold and all the power. Our leadership would be the ones that speak for us, not to us.

Its something we should think about.With the greed of corporations pushing the price of food and other resources to new highs, people will be ready to tear down the old system.The question is if we'll have something new to replace it with.

Do not promise too much change too quickly. If you cannot deliver on your promises, a great segment of the populace will turn on you, even if you are considerably better than the previous institution.

Maintain an outward sense of continuity at all costs. Even after they killed his grand-uncle and later plotted to kill him, Augustus Caesar never disbanded the Senate.

If someone is particularly egregious in rejecting any clemency offered, or later double-crosses the new institution, the government must resist the urge to make an example. Allow public opinion to deliver their punishment unless they pose an imminent danger of a coup.

Never forget that you serve the people, not the other way around. You must be willing to make hard sacrifices. It is human to wish for a legacy that is revered for generations, but it is also egoism. You must be willing to make a sacrifice even greater than your life: the respect and admiration of your posterity. If Fate is willing, you need not make this sacrifice, but one must be willing to be hated if they are to be truly selfless.

If circumstances allow, reverse the standard structure of things: those with specialized knowledge of (but no personal investments in) a subject to chair their committees. Legal professionals serve as adjutants to translate plan into policy, not the primary source of legislation.

In a system of checks and balances, systemic change only occurs in response to an immediate and pressing crisis, and requires strong executive leadership. If crisis strikes when the chief executive office is hobbled by other circumstances, the government may fail.

Systemic change in the absence of pressing crises requires not only a strong chief executive office, but a strong chief executive officer.

However, a strong executive has the power to further expand its own powers, either de jure or de facto. Thus transparency is key. Transparency is fundamental. Intelligence services should possess a culture that all but requires them to disclose indiscretions and overreach by their own government, much as the German army is not only inclined, but in fact obligated, to disregard orders they deem unethical.

omnibus_necanda_sunt:All revolutions need a leader. But that leader, no matter how saintly, cannot be trusted with the government beyond the earliest transitionary phase. In the best revolutions, the leader designates a trusted and worthy successor with whom they have no ties of friendship or family, and preferably little or no two-way communication.

Get them in the same room, then spring the decision on them on live television to catch their surprise. Hint that refusal would leave a power vacuum in the fragile transition phase and let their sense of responsibility do the rest. If you've picked the right one for the job, the hint won't even be necessary; They would figure it out on their own.

And if you had an armed paramilitary, don't disband it; transform it into the new, disciplined police and security force. Allow all those from the previous incarnations of such agencies to join unless they have committed actual crimes.

omnibus_necanda_sunt:Remember that mercy is the most powerful tool the victor has in their possession. Pardon or even elevate those expecting imprisonment or death to create bonds of loyalty that even a childhood friendship cannot rival.

Do not interfere with civil services or bureaucracies unless a particular agency poses a genuine problem. Do not demonize existing special interest groups. Antagonize them only in private; they will thank you for it. Give them terms that are both powerful carrot and well-sharpened stick.

With malice toward none, with charity toward all.

/imagine how much better off the South might be had Lincoln been alive to guide its post-war transformation

The powers that be have placated the populous in this country to remain seated and do nothing but, biatch, buy guns and ammo at over inflated prices and settle back on their over saturated with HFCs asses to watch some reality show they claim they hate.

As long as the cable stays on people will talk revolution but, when the call to arms is sounded they will politely decline as they just ordered a pizza and don't want miss elimination night on American Idol.

You saw how quickly a large swath of people reverted to "damn, dirty hippies" with the Occupy Movement.

The Revolution of the Apathetic was waged by our government and "We the People" lost. Most people don't know it yet, but the real problem is that most don't give enough of a damn to do anything about.

omnibus_necanda_sunt:In a system of checks and balances, systemic change only occurs in response to an immediate and pressing crisis, and requires strong executive leadership. If crisis strikes when the chief executive office is hobbled by other circumstances, the government may fail.

Systemic change in the absence of pressing crises requires not only a strong chief executive office, but a strong chief executive officer.

However, a strong executive has the power to further expand its own powers, either de jure or de facto. Thus transparency is key. Transparency is fundamental. Intelligence services should possess a culture that all but requires them to disclose indiscretions and overreach by their own government, much as the German army is not only inclined, but in fact obligated, to disregard orders they deem unethical.

This isn't unusual, though it's probably stricter than most. In the US, you are expected to disobey unlawful orders, but that's a much different standard than unethical. If you obey an unlawful order you can be punished

Honor the debts incurred during the transition. Do not force those who struggled so long to sacrifice their livelihood, even if they feel the sacrifice is necessary and worthwhile.

Structure the governing body in such a manner that the "Big Men" of every constituency must meet face to face, and foster friendship between them.

Though religion is best excluded from government, ritual and ceremony are not. Even if it seems corny (in fact, especially then; self-awareness is good, self-consciousness and cynicism not). Such practices offer the social cohesiveness of shared tradition without the ingrained antagonisms of adopting a state religion.

Avoid patronage and clientelism at all costs. Resist the urge to shower supporters with gifts. Likewise resist the urge to shower former adversaries with gifts in a display of noblesse oblige. Invest in infrastructure, healthcare, science, and education--both in science and in the humanities.

Do not be afraid of the private sector; that's where those with the most expertise reside. If a purely private solution from proven and trustworthy firms cannot be found, charter a state-owned enterprise and staff it almost entirely with private employees (but use public personnel from the relevant agencies to staff the board of directors). Given the long-term focus of the chief shareholder (the state), and the disposition of the board, better business practices are all but guaranteed.

omnibus_necanda_sunt:Avoid patronage and clientelism at all costs. Resist the urge to shower supporters with gifts. Likewise resist the urge to shower former adversaries with gifts in a display of noblesse oblige. Invest in infrastructure, healthcare, science, and education--both in science and in the humanities.

Do not be afraid of the private sector; that's where those with the most expertise reside. If a purely private solution from proven and trustworthy firms cannot be found, charter a state-owned enterprise and staff it almost entirely with private employees (but use public personnel from the relevant agencies to staff the board of directors). Given the long-term focus of the chief shareholder (the state), and the disposition of the board, better business practices are all but guaranteed.

However, for the love of God, keep the ability to create or interfere with these institutions as far away from people with regularly elected positions as possible. Appointees of such people should oversee this function.

Organization != leaders or parties; that only leads to a "meet the new boss" scenario. I'm increasingly convinced that the only form of organization that matters is small groups (5-25 individuals, an "affinity group") based around specific activities, organized into federations with others who are nearby in activity and/or geography (each group being a member of ~3-5 federations), and those federations organized with other federations, using a delegate system. We could have the entire continent organized in about four or five tiers.

So these 'effervescent' outbursts may be neat, but, because they are based on the idea of 'mass' rather than being organized, they won't go anywhere, or they will be hijacked by politicians.

UNC_Samurai/imagine how much better off the South might be had Lincoln been alive to guide its post-war transformation

It was only after Lincoln died that the Radical Republicans were able to carry out their agenda. He probably would have implemented something like the Compromise of 1877, which was the beginning of the beginning of the effective re-enslavement of black people, but ten years earlier.

Seriously? Since Lennon's views and opinions and ideas are all pretty well documented (he was a vocal sort of guy), please, oh! PLEASE tell us what your conversations with the dead man have revealed about his altered opinions in the afterlife./yeah, I know, leventylongtonnesofderp is an ass//can't help poking things like that with a stick